


Dog Days

by Iwrteficsnottragedies



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Non-Magical, Closeted Character, Disabled Remus Lupin, Florida, Fourth of July, Indian James Potter, M/M, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Moony is a smartass and that's why we love him, Moony was not shy friend that kept the boys in line fuck off, Pining James Potter, Prosthetic legs, Remus Lupin is a Little Shit, Set in America, Sirius Black is a Little Shit, Sneaking Around, Summer Romance, Summer Vacation, They're both 20, Underage Smoking, its only illegal if you get caught, mentions of past trama, shes not into it bud get over it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-13 05:40:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,991
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29521683
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Iwrteficsnottragedies/pseuds/Iwrteficsnottragedies
Summary: "New start then? Names' Sirius Black.""For real?" He asked. That was nearly as pretentious as his own."That's what's written on my underwear. Why, what's yours? Please don't be something like William, you're way too badass for that."Remus raises an eyebrow as he reaches for the hand. That was the first time he'd ever been described like that other than from little children. Then again, the boy seemed much like a kid himself. "We've been talking for less than a minute. You don't even know me.""Do I have to? You poured your drink all over my bitch of a mother. That's good enough in my book."OR20-year-old Remus Lupin was not a people person. He'd planned for the next two weeks to be filled with family and catching up on classwork. Sirius Black had other ideas.PLAYLIST: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLljb4xyHv0LX6wHD96uupcW490SgVsFz0
Relationships: James Potter/Lily Evans Potter, Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Comments: 5
Kudos: 35





	1. Sun of a Beach

The gremlins were screaming again.

It shouldn’t have been a surprise seeing as they yelled over every other thing but after hours of complaining of the hot, un-air-conditioned air inside the car they would shut their traps for a little while after getting what they wanted. Yet now they were complaining of the hot, un-air-conditioned air  _ outside _ of the car and Remus was at his wit’s end.

“Moony, _ please.  _ Please with a cherry on top.”

“No.”

“Mom said you had to.”

“Your mother told me to keep you right where you are so you don’t get run over by a speeding BMW that wouldn’t look twice to your two atom-sized bodies pancake-shaped on the ground.”

The twin seven-year-olds huffed angrily and resigned to plopping themselves down on the bench and glaring down at the ground with an expression that could have counted as satire. He wasn’t going to feel guilty - he wasn’t. He was a sweating pig himself and would do anything to slip into the pool as well but his Aunt Druella was still inside the town building getting them their keys to the rooms. 

“Can we go to the park at least? It’s right there!”

_ “No,”  _ he huffs, swiping a bead of sweat away from his forehead. He’d forgotten how unforgiving the Florida heat was. “Your mum should be out any second and you can ask her.”

Taking the straw of his god-knows how sugary drink in his mouth, he takes in the tall orange and red villas surrounding them and the shiny brand new cars bumper to bumper on the road, eager to start their vacation. Their 2005 soccer van he was leaning up against in the shade stuck out like a sore thumb.

It was like this every year since before he was born. Frankly, Remus had no idea how his family afforded such a place when most of them were either working blue-collar jobs or unemployed altogether. He’d asked once when he was smaller and got a vague answer that his grandma had bought a timeshare years before the company started taking off meaning his mother’s side of the family all shared the five suits offered to them for two weeks a year. It would make sense to sell the share now and get the probably thousands offered for it now but his grandmother was a mean old bitch and refused. He should thank her for that, he supposed, because it was practically the only time he ever got to see his family anymore now that he was in university.

“What the hell is taking her so long?” Madaline swore under her breath right next to him. Her vivid purple hair was pulled up in a high ponytail with loose strands sticking out all over the place and her tank top was beginning to become soaked. 

“I can go in and check if you keep an eye on the demons.”

She side-eyes him. “You just want to go inside for the air-conditioning.”

Remus raises an eyebrow at her, looking down. She was shorter by half a foot despite being half a year his senior. “And what if I do?”

“You’d have to beat me to it.”

“Leave me here alone with them and I hold no responsibility if I end up strangling one of them.”

She watches her little brothers talking excitedly under their breaths to one another. They were tearing apart the fan palm bushes placed on the side of the building for decoration now. Remus would never understand how they were able to jump so quickly from one thing to another.

Madaline’s nose scrunched up before sighing dramatically. “Drama queen.”

He wiggles the melted slushie in his hands in front of her tauntingly. She eyes it greedily. She’d been asking for a sip the entire ride. “I'll let you have the rest.”

“Fine, then. Get the keys from her if you can. I swear I’m gonna evaporate into mist and absorbed into some rich guy’s gourmet ice cubes before she gets out.” She says with a huff. She reaches out for it excitedly but he pulls back just in time. 

He tsks. _ “Except, _ you still owe me from the crisps incident.”

_ “Chips,  _ you mean. _ ” _

Remus gave her a smirk before slipping past her and into the large double doors that led into the building. Immediately a large gust of air blew at him from above in an attempt to keep the bugs out. Remus was tempted to just stand in the doorway and let the cool air rush past him until some guard kicked his poor ass out, but people were coming in behind him. Madaline smirked at him through the glass doors knowing exactly what he was thinking. She mocked him fainting causing him to playfully flick her off. (He hopes the little ones didn’t see it. His aunt will have his arse. Snitches.)

The grand room was dozens upon dozens of people waiting in line at each and every welcome booth on top of the families and luggage taking up every available seat. Large overhead signs were overhead advertising discounted tickets to the dozens of attractions around the city. The beady eyes of Mickey Mouse stared at him tauntingly. He glared back. (He’d never actually been to Disney World despite it being around the corner. They’d never had enough money to go due to medical expenses.)

He was immediately able to pick out what was taking so long. A pale, primly dressed woman with her hair fitted into a tight bun on the top of her head stood front and center of the floor as if she owned the place and judging by expensive clothes and jewelry, not practical for the weather, she just might.

She’s yelling at a couple of feet away from her who return it with the same fierceness. 

_ “- no right!” _

“He’s not your son!”

“He’s as good as!”

He takes notice of the two boys standing behind the couple. A boy with dark hair cascading a little past his shoulder and sharp, angular features that matched the screaming woman was holding tight of the boy with the glasses’ arm. Neither looked much older than himself.

“He’s his own person!” The women of the couple hissed. “ _ You _ have no right! I swear I’ll sue you to pieces if you touch so much as a hair on his head again!”

“How dare you-!”

The crowd had thinned around them. Some were trying to mind their own business while others tried to discreetly get it on tape. Remus cringed at the insensitivity. He looked around for his aunt to get out of there as quickly as possible to find that she was stuck behind the commotion. 

If there was one thing Remus Lupin hated, it was attention. He’d tried to live most of his life away from it but the double-takes seemed to follow him regardless. The second was rich assholes. Remus wanted to barf at the drama. 

Remus managed to weasel his way through the people over towards her trying his best the block it out. His aunt’s eyes lit up with relief at the sight of him. “Sorry hun,” she says, “they’re still processing our reservation. If I’d known it’ll have taken this long…” She side-eyes the fight with the same distaste as him. 

“Maddie is losing her shit.”

“Yes, well. Not much of a surprise there.” She sighs. She reached into her bag and pushed her keys into his hands. “I  _ told _ him to call ahead and look at what happened. That man… The rooms are in building 5800. Go ahead and drive over there and we’ll meet you. Though I don’t know how long that’ll be. The audacity of people these days.” 

His Aunt Durella was nearing her late forties and took the same attitude as her mothers in old-fashioned ways of keeping your affairs private. Evidently, that had rubbed off on him over the years. He kept his mouth shut from yapping some snarky reply that got him in trouble far too often and pocketed the keys. 

He spins around eager to get out of the crowded space (he hadn’t been good with a large number of people since he was a child) and into the cool comforts of the king-sized mattress of their rooms. Perhaps it’s his own impatience on that part that was to blame for what happened next, though he wouldn’t admit it on his dying breath.

He pushed through the crowd using his free hand not caring for the snobbish complaints. He’d expected them living the life he had. What he hadn’t been expecting was for one woman to shove her side right back at him, tipping him over just slightly enough for his prosthetic to give in and into a burly-looking man who flicked him off his side without so much as a second glance. He reeled backward with an apology on his lips, but the dramatic shift in weight had him tumbling once again. His hands flung out to his side in a helpless attempt to steady himself. With widening eyes he realized an unexpecting toddler was in his path (fall) of travel. In a desperate attempt not to fall over them and cause a scene, he skidded to the side where his weight tipped dangerously just as a woman shoved her trailing luggage back behind him. He’d accepted his fate when the drink slipped from his hands into the air as he started to finally take his not-so elegant face-plant to the ground. 

It seemed to happen in slow motion just to taunt him. The primly dressed woman from earlier had turned around abruptly in an attempt to get the last word from her screaming match. You could almost see the fumes leaving her nose from her nasty temper. She’d pushed through the crowd at exactly the wrong moment causing her to come in full contact with a faceful of the bright red, sugary slushie. Unadulterated terror overflows from Remus and takes the colour out of his face as he jerks his head up as the foam cup clattered to the floor next to him.

Any other time seeing a pretentious snob get their worth of hell would have made Remus shit his pants in laughter. Only that he realizes  _ oh shit I’m in so much trouble  _ as the shocked expression on her stained and dripping face begins to mix with pure fury. A few people around them who noticed the accident are now laughing slightly under their breath after a minuscule silence. The embarrassment now feels as if it’ll permanently burn onto his face.

He tries to scramble upwards with the help of a nearby luggage case ignoring the pounding in his skull and his hip from the fall. A quick glance now made sure nothing had fallen or broken. That wasn’t his main issue though. Holding a hand to his bleeding nose, he met the eyes of the frozen woman right in front of him. She seemed to be in so much shock that her mouth opened and closed like suffocating fish without a word being muttered. 

“Oh my god. Oh my  _ god.  _ I’m so sorry. It was an accident, I swear it. Are you okay? I can help you if you need me to-” Remus’s apology comes tumbling out of his mouth but it’s quickly cut off with an outrageous howl of laughter that rises above all the rest. Remus’s eyes dart behind her shoulder and notice it was the same teenagers behind the couple from earlier.

_ “You- You-” _ The woman seethes at the flustered Remus. The hand at her side twitches as if she wanted to smack her. Subconsciously, he dared her to.  _ Go on, knock me upside the head. I need to cover college tuition somehow. _

“Go on, mother! Tell him off! I’m sure a firm lecturing by the Kool-Aid man will keep him up at night!” One of the boys taunted loudly with wheezing laughter. He’s doubled over, holding his stomach with a stupid grin. She whips around, bristling with rage. Still, she does nothing but let out what can only be assumed as a strangled sort of growl. She wipes her face with the handkerchief she just so happens to have in her designer purse then decides to display her wrath even further by crushing the foam cup beneath her feet in a singular movement of her shoe pumps.

Remus is just thankful the murderous glare is longer on him. He backs up hesitantly in an attempt to flee the scene in case she starts to demand he pay for the damage. 

A cool hand is placed on his shoulder from behind. He immediately recognizes it as his aunt and his anxiety lessens just the smallest bit. 

“I’m really sorry,” Remus tries again as his aunt takes the place next to him. “It just kinda slipped-”

She doesn’t bother to let him finish. In fact, she doesn’t even look at him. She turns on her heel and flees through the front door while keeping her walk brisk to regain some of her dignity. She glares at everyone with her head held high on her dramatic exit, yet her dripping dress makes it lose some of its obvious power she’d used to having. A shaky smile etches into his face at the trail of red footprints she leaves behind.

Remus lets out a heavy sigh of relief. Hesitantly, he moves a hand up to his upper lip where blood flow has started.

“Oh dear,” she mutters softly. She’s smiling too as despite trying to hide it for her nephew’s sake. “They do say karma’s a bitch.”

🌣🌣🌣

  
  


“Come _ on,  _ already. You can’t do homework on vacation. I’m pretty sure that’s illegal.”

“Leave me to my misery.”

Madaline flops down on her back beside him on the bed. Her untameable mass of curly hair falls around her like a halo. “You can’t sit here all vacation.”

Remus flips the page of his book raising an eyebrow. “I’ll leave. When the entire world forgets.”

Madaline turns around on her stomach to face him. She gives him that head tilt and irritated glances she always did. Her own bed on the other side of the room was perfectly lay-able but he was beginning to suspect she only was on him to irritate him further. “It’s not like you’ll see any of them again. Excuses.”

Fair point. He’d gotten over the fiasco hours ago. In all honesty, he was taking a break from applying more weight to his leg. His grandfather had seemed to forget that 1) he was a scrawny wimp with no muscle mass and 2) he was missing an eighth of his body. Ok, that might have been dramatic but carrying heavy boxes up and suitcases up three flights upstairs on a prosthetic leg because they just had to be given the only building with a broken lift,  _ hurt.  _ He wanted to take a break from it before he was pulled into some other strenuous activity insisted upon him by his smaller cousins. Of course, he couldn’t say that outright without his aunt causing a scene with his grandparents, and after the events from earlier today, he’ll rather avoid as much of those as he could. 

Currently, it was detached underneath the blanket as much as it could without looking suspicious. It was one of the below-knee ones so it wasn’t that hard. 

“You caught me.”

She sighs dramatically and shimmied herself off the bed and into their shared bathroom after grabbing her bathing suit. “You better be ready to go in twenty.”

“Hooray,” he mutters under his breath once she closes the door. He lays down the thick biology textbook on his lap and looks around the room. It was a shared suite that hung off of his aunt’s larger one. Their own bedroom that held a balcony over one of the pools slid into a kitchen and living room. To the right of the kitchen counter was the door into the large shared living area with the rest of the family.

He decides to say fuck it as he hazardously tosses the book back in his overstuffed bag. Normally he always skipped the ‘owners barbeques’ that the company threw every couple of days. He’d realized early on that most of them were either filled with old people (which mixed into the slippery poolside was not usually a good result) or snobs. 

He was hungry as hell though and there was only so much granola bars could do. It wasn’t as if he had to swim, really. He didn't like doing so in front of many people anyways - too many stares. He could easily convince Madeline into slipping away for some ice cream.

Remus slips off the edge of the bed and fixes the liner and sockets the leg. He always preferred to add a matching shoe on the shell of it for a bit of normalcy. It made walking harder than normal but it was something he was willing to suffer for. He side glanced at his beat-up sweatpants that were his usual go-to in public. It would be too hot to suffer through today without the chances of a heat stroke. That was one thing he loved about his school, Princeton. No matter the time of year, it was always cold enough to wear pants. He didn’t have much of an option here. Shorts it would be.

Thirty-minutes and a Thomas-the-Train-themed shuttle later, he’s laying under the shade of a flamboyantly large beach umbrella by the poolside. There’s vibrant music playing from inside the outside bar and fake Hawaiian leis and grass skirts covering the area in an attempt to make the place seem more lively than it already was. Madaline is sitting criss-cross from him on the end of the long beach chair with a plate of food and pina colada in her hand. An alcoholic one of course - just to try it. She’d turned twenty-one a couple weeks ago and was enjoying her new-found liberty. 

“I told you it’ll just be old people,” he says, stealing a sip of it when she’s not looking. The mist-blowing fans were keeping him cool but the heat was starting to get to him. The breezy, gray tank-top was beginning to soak with sweat again.

“You could get in the pool.”

“I  _ could _ .”

“And I’ll death-glare anyone who much as looks at you too long.”

A small grin appears. She’d been the same way since he was fourteen and first got the damned thing. She once 'accidentally' locked someone who asked him how it happened in the bathroom for two hours when they were in ninth grade. He could take care of himself yet it was a nice change of things.

Remus waves her off leaving her to jump in by herself. She had a fluid sort of grace in the water that was more animal than human as she weaved through other party-goers like a natural. With a small pang, it reminded him of when his father had taught him to swim in this same exact pool at four years old.

Remus sits there on his own, fairly content as he watches her. His uncle and aunt and a couple of other family members were off somewhere else and came to check in on him every couple of minutes. They tried to get him to join in but politely refused. He was about to see if he could sneak off to smoke a quick fag when he spots them. The same Indian couple and the two boys from earlier that day. 

_ God fucking dammit. _

There had to be some sort of god laughing at him from up above because there was no way his life was naturally such a badly-written sitcom. Out of the hundreds, maybe thousands, of people in the entire resort and it just had to be the people that would make forgetting that morning that much harder. It doesn’t help that the paler-one meets his gaze at the exact moment he tried to look away. He can tell by the way his eyes light up immediately that he recognizes him and his stomach starts to form knots.

It was just his luck when he started to make his way to exactly where Remus was sitting.

“You’re that bloke from the town hall this morning, aren’t you?” He says, taking the lounge chair right next to his. The British accent immediately stands out and makes Remus perk up seeing as he was welsh himself.

Remus wasn’t going to lie to himself. The boy was hot.  _ Really _ hot. Both literally and metaphorically. He hadn't noticed it from the distance earlier, but now that he was up close he could see his bright gray eyes and delicate features. Remus had gotten over his sexuality troubles ages ago, yet this was just another double-whammy to the face.

He picks at a loose string at his shorts. Remus wouldn’t say he was a timid person usually, just that the cards that he’d been dealt with at the moment weren't very ideal. Subconsciously he rubbed his hands over the dozens of scars that littered his arms and everywhere else of his body. “Yeah. I suppose that’s me. Rather not advertise it.”

“Why not? It was bloody _ brilliant!”  _ The boy grins. It’s rather infectious, he realizes, because it almost makes him want to as well. “The best thing I've seen in weeks, I tell you. I think my mate pissed his pants in laughter.”

“Good to know it provided amusement for the audience,” he mutters slightly. He takes another bite of his food to avoid talking.

The boy hesitates. “That came out wrong, didn’t it?”

“A bit, yeah.” Remus is only having him on but it was funny. His aunt always was lecturing him on his people skills. It wasn’t his fault though when most of them walked into it. 

He gave a small smirk to let him know he was only joking and the boy automatically reinflates. 

He held out his hand. It hung heavily in the air between the two seats as Remus eyed it oddly. He was obviously posh - or just more so better off than him. He’s what his grandmother would call ‘well bred’. 

“New start then? Names’ Sirius Black.”

“For real?” He asked. That was nearly as pretentious as his own. 

“That’s what's written on my underwear. Why, what's yours? Please don’t be something like William, you’re way too badass for that.”

Remus raises an eyebrow as he reaches for the hand. That was the first time he’d ever been described like that other than from little children. Then again, the boy seemed much like a kid himself. “We’ve been talking for less than a minute. You don’t even know me.”

“Do I have to? You poured your drink all over my bitch of a mother. That’s good enough in my book.”

“On _ accident.” _

Sirius shrugs indifferently. “Humour me, then.”

He sighs as he takes a bite out of his fruit salad. “Remus Lupin.”

Sirius’ eyes light up once again. “Oh, this is too good.”


	2. Pier Pressure

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oops this is the first thing i've written in months,,, sorry :/

**_Dog Days; Part Two_ **

**_[Pier Pressure]_ **

The rest of the barbeque passed in a blur. Remus surprisingly found himself enjoying the company of the absurd boy with the absurd name. A breath of fresh air he should call it. Sirius didn’t hold back much. He jumped from one topic to another like candy, and while usually this would be something that wore Remus’ patience thin, it only sharpened the wit on his tongue. Sirius didn’t seem to mind this. In fact, he looked to be enjoying it a little too much with the permanently drawn boyish grin.

“I’m Welsh, actually.” Remus corrects when Sirius asks him where he’s from. “Up in Conwy. I moved to the states when I was thirteen. I’m only visiting here on an annual family vacation.”

Sirius tilts his head in a puppy-dog manner in a silent urge for him to continue. 

“I’m from New-Jersey if you know where that is. Up north. I go to Princeton.” 

Sirius’s eyes widen slightly. “University?”

“No, the bat dung farm,” Remus deadpans. Sirius laughs despite it not being that good of a joke. Regardless, he finds himself staring inconspicuously at the boys bobbing Adam's apple.

“Oh, you’re a goody-two-shoes then.”

Remus’s face scrunched up in the center showing his wave of disgust. “How did you come up with that conclusion?” He asks harsher than intended. He used to be called that in primary school and has hated it ever since. It made him sound stuck up. Just because he knew when to pick his battles didn’t make him  _ anything.  _ If it did, it only granted him his freedom because he was sure as hell wouldn’t be here today if he hadn’t learned that skill early on. 

Sirius straightened his band and held his hands in the air. “I didn’t mean to offend you! Honest! I’m just saying isn’t that one of those really cult-like uni’s that only accept the elite? My brother applied there last year and got rejected despite being the top in his class!”

His shoulders slouched, losing their tension the question had caused him. “Dunno. My dramatic backstory probably gained me a few points with the admissions team.”

It wasn’t a lie. If you looked up the name ‘Lupin’ you’d come up with hundreds of different search results. You would find his father’s anti-gay legislation he’d worked tirelessly to defended up until his untimely death to his mother’s overdose. It was the sob story of the century the media couldn’t get enough of. Though, he had a couple creative insults to tell them where else they could shove their cameras.

He hadn’t even intended to apply in the first place. He would have been plenty content sitting in community college taking classes with a part-time job at the theater. It had been his cousin’s push to just ‘test the waters’ that forced him to apply and ending up with a near full-ride. He almost didn’t accept, refusing to take the pity money but his aunt went into tears every time he brought it up.

Sirius is biting his lip and Remus is afraid he might have scared him off. Instead, he stretches out on the chair fully. Content, he gives another smile. “Never went myself. Uni I mean. Just wasn’t my forte.”

“Wouldn’t have guessed.” He teases with the same mocking tone.

Sirius faked gasped. He flung a chip off his plate at Remus. “Now what’s _ that  _ supposed to mean?”

“Dunno. Seems like you’re the kind who would drop out at sixteen and start their own underground drug operation.”

‘I’ll have you know I graduated third in my class! With honors!” Sirius huffs. “It seems we both aren’t what we seem, huh?”

Remus pauses. God he really needed to learn how to shut his mouth, didn’t he? “I suppose so.”

He wanted to ask why he hadn’t chosen to go, but Sirius was switching the conversation before he could wrap his head around it fully. “-hey you said annual family vacation. Does that mean you know you’re way around here well?”

“I would say so,” he says. He looks down and realizes with a pang that all of his food was long gone.

Remus knew this place like the back of his hand. From where the swans on the lake liked to hang out to the best pools to break into overnight. What could Remus say? He was a restless night owl. Every nook-and-cranny had a story he could tell.

“Brilliant!” Sirius exclaims, then at Remus’s raised eyebrow, hesitates. “Err- I mean, I’ve never been here before so maybe you could show me around? ‘Cause this is my first time in the states and I’m only here for a short time and want to make the best of it, you know?”

Remus stops and stares at the  _ exceptionally _ hot boy in front of him. For a second, he swears he’s being asked on a date. Except, with all common sense, it shouldn’t be possible. There was no fucking way that Remus could be so lucky to have this god-like creature interested in him, let alone swing his way. That’s just not how things happened for him. He automatically thinks it must be a joke, but one look on the other’s face told no malice. He was genuine. 

_ But,  _ there was also the possibility he was reading way too much into it (just like he always did). And that Sirius might just want to hang out with a bloke. Sirius seemed like that kind of guy - too friendly and extroverted for his own will. He probably had no idea of the implication of his words. 

“How much are you willing to pay me?” Remus tries to snap back but immediately cringes internally. God that made him sound like a prostitute.

Sirius’ finger taps against his chin in consideration. “Free ice cream?”

“Fair enough,” Remus smiles. Meanwhile, his head is a continuous monologue of confused screaming. What the fuck did he think he was doing? Whatever it was, it wasn’t going to end nicely for him. He could feel it. “There’s a Herhesy’s one. It makes the best caramel drizzle.”

“Much more of a fruity person myself.”

Remus gives him a hard stare. Sirius does it right back, eyebrow raised. Right. There was no misinterpreting that. 

Sirius slides the sunglasses off the top of his head and over his head, allowing the long strands of silky black hair to fall loose. His attention has turned to watch the people splashing inside the swimming pool but Remus doesn’t miss the faint smile that comes with it.

The party slowly starts to wound down around them to Remus’ favor. He’s been twitching for a fag for hours now and hadn’t found the time. He doesn’t want this conversation to end though. It had been a while since someone had taken interest in just him, and while he wouldn’t admit it, he was enjoying it.

Tentatively, he shakes the box of Marlboro’s still making sure his aunt won’t see it. Sirius eyes it with curiosity. 

“Want one?” He asks. He’s already standing up, not waiting for his answer so Sirius pops up quickly beside him. 

“Sure.”

Remus finds Maddy sitting with a boy at the edge of the pool before they go. Someone would freak if they didn’t know where he was. She merrily winks at him before making an obscure comment that makes Remus shove her face-down back into the water and soaking the boy to her left. He doesn’t need to see her to know she’s flipping him off as walks back to the brunet. 

“Who’s that?” Sirius asks as they slip past the pool’s gates into the disgustingly perfectly green cut grass that itches his foot.

“My cousin. She’s a dick, really.”

“Oh,” is all that he says. For a second he thinks he was right and that the boy really was a straight tosser, but then he opens his mouth again and surprises him. “She looks a lot like my cousin. Seven now I think. Lights up the room.”

“Yeah?”

“I haven’t seen her in ages, though.”

Sensing that the subject was teetering towards subjects that neither of them wanted to sway into, he points out one of the villas next to them. 

“See this? No cameras and full roof access. The best place to watch the Disney firework at night.” Remus leaves out the part that the only reason he knew that in the first place was because he was running from the security after vandalizing some douchebags BMW with window markers at thirteen and was too afraid to come down.

Sirius lights up. “Really? They do  _ fireworks?” _

“Every night if you catch them on time. Nine-thirty, I think.” 

They find a small alcove after that. It’s tucked in between some more perfectly cut bushes and the backside of a building with no windows facing their direction. Sirius doesn’t seem to mind that he’s been taken to a completely isolated location with somebody he’d just met. Again, he supposes that he doesn’t make out to be a very imposing kidnapper. 

“So,” Sirius asks when they’re sitting on the ground and backs to the wall. “Have you been?”

Remus had almost forgotten what they had been talking about. “Disney? Nah. Too many kids.”

“I’ve always wanted to. ”

Remus couldn’t help himself. He laughs with his head thrown back. 

“What?” Sirius asks but he’s also smiling. 

“I was right. You really are just an overgrown kid.”

“You barely know me!” He says, repeating Remus words from earlier. Sirius doesn’t seem to be fighting against the claim, though. 

Remus holds the filter between his lips as he lights it. “I have a good judge of character.” A small puff of smoke trails out after the words and he blows it away from his face. Sirius watches him with what he could only write off as fascination. 

He lets Sirius take one although he knows he shouldn’t. It's obvious he’d never done it before. Remus might have been a little bit of a sadist watching him try to fumble through it. 

Sirius takes a couple tries to light it right. He tries to hold back his cough at first but ultimately gives up and releases a cloud of grey. 

Maybe he was a bit of a dick. “You good?

“No- no, I’m fine.” He says through a coughing fit and fanning the smoke around him. “It’s good.”

Remus smiles then looks away and off into the distance where the small pond shimmered in the heat. “Alright, then.” Then, feeling bad he adds, “don’t take it in all at once. Lightly. You’ll become sick like that.”

Sirius rubs his watery eyes which he tries to pass off a bug in his face. “I think I already  _ am.” _

Remus laughs again. He spends a few minutes teaching him how to properly. Later he would laugh at the picture of his scrawny, disabled person trying to teach this 70’s punk rip-off how to blow smoke rings. It was about as cliche as you could get.

A comfortable silence falls over them as Sirius tries to fall into the steady rhythm of it. Remus had finished his own ages and was now stretching his legs out in front of him. Sirius tries to keep his staring to himself but was failing terribly.

“Go on, ask about it. You aren’t the first.”

Sirius bites his lip. Remus realizes it must be a habit. “I don’t know. That seems kind of rude, doesn’t it?”

“And I said you could ask,” Remus says having to withhold his urge to roll his eyes. Another one of pet-peeves. 

Sirius sits up a little bit straighter. “Well…. I’ve never actually met someone with one before, you know.”

He doesn’t know actually, but he lets him continue.

“Does the bone stick out?”

Remus had his lips already parted to say some generic answer to a generic question he’d been asked a thousand times, yet this time he has to stop and pause. “I-  _ what?” _

“I mean I watched this movie once and he got his leg cut open and they had to amputate it with like the cool bionic one. It showed the surgery and everything. Really gory. My mate had nightmares for weeks.”

If Remus hadn’t been so confused he would have laughed. That had to be the most obscure question he’d ever got. “Well - no. I don’t actually remember the surgery. I was kinda knocked out of gas.”

“Wicked,” Sirius gives a rugged smile. “Does it come off?”

“Why - planning on kidnapping me? Because I can assure I’ll make a terrible prisoner. Every single one of my report cards says ‘does not work well with others”.

“I’m sure you’ll make a dazzling one,” Sirius says with a wink. “But it seems just a bit of a lag. Can you swim?”

“I gotta take it off but I can manage. Not exactly an Olympian.”

It was a touchy subject. He still had some of the medals he’d won in primary school on the children’s regionals swimming teams before the accident happened. He’d moved on since then but obviously, it still held a small twinge of pain. 

“How about sex? How does that  _ work?” _

Remus sputters. Jesus Christ, the boy surely wasn’t a prude. “You realize you’re asking me about my sex life. A stranger. I’m pretty sure this counts as harassment.”

“You  _ said _ I could ask. This is on you.”

“You know, most people keep to the same questions of ‘ _ How did it happen?’ _ or _ ‘Does it hurt?’” _

“I am a curious man.”

“You’re a pervert. You probably have some weird amputee fetish thing.”

“Oh shove off.”

The conversation had taken a weird turn that Remus was feeling as if he’d locked himself into the corner. It was to his best of luck when the loud guitar intro of  _ ‘Howling for You’  _ by The Black Keys breaks through the odd atmosphere. Sirius quickly slips the phone out of his back pocket and curses whatever name shows up as the caller ID. 

“Hold on,” He says sheepishly as he answers it. Remus overhears music and unintelligible mumbles from the other side of the line. 

“Yeah- yeah.  _ Yes.  _ You’re worse than Mrs. Potter, you know that?” There's a pause where the other person must be talking, then Sirius turns to give Remus a once-over that makes his stomach tighten nervously. “Yeah, no. I’m good. Stop worrying. Seriously- don’t even start. See you later.”

The call ends with a ‘click’. 

“Heading back? He asks before Sirius can beat him to the punch. He just sighs dramatically and kicks loosely at one of his loose laces on his Doc Martens. It reminds him of his younger cousins.

“Ya, just my mate again. Really pushover with safety.” Sirius pretends to barf but Remus can hear the traces of appreciation miles away. Faintly, we wished he had a friend who was the same. 

“I wouldn’t have any clue.” He jokes and Sirius laughs.

“You’re an alright bloke, Remu.”

“Remus.”

Sirius pushes himself off the wall using his half-bent leg. Remus tries not to stare at how his sunglasses start to slip off his nose from the action. “We’ll see about that.”

They quickly exchange numbers at Sirius’s insistence. He’d almost forgotten about showing him around. A hot guy being interested in you did that.

It almost saddens him to see him go. And - okay he would admit it - that  _ magnificent  _ arse too.

Remus takes out another cigarette. Alright bloke indeed. 

**🌣🌣🌣**

**7:42 PM Rat Boy:** Please tell me you have the chemistry homework. 

**8:04 PM Remus:** No dice.

**8:05 PM Rat Boy:** You’re cruel.

**8:06 PM Remus:** I was gonna bug Marlene for it. 

**8:09 PM Rat Boy:** I already asked. She called me rat boy 

**8:09 PM Rat Boy:** :(

**8: 10 PM Remus:** ha

**8: 14 PM Rat Boy:** i hate you

**8:14 PM Remus:** me too 

Remus looked up from his phone to see the twins, Noah and Ben, bickering about something out of the balcony with the glass door wide open and letting out all the cool air. Beside him lay Madaline in an oversized  _ Diamond Dogs _ t-shirt (which he was certain she’d found in his room after he moved out) and pajama bottoms. She lazily stuffed ice cream in her face from their shared container sitting between them as they watched  _ The Great American Baking Show.  _

He knew he really ought to be catching up on his schoolwork but he generally couldn’t let himself bother with it. The thought of reading fifty pages on the formation of ATP synthase made him want to bang his head against a brick wall. The peaceful bliss of pretending he had nothing to do was much more preferable.

He was about to suggest they should go down to the pool that should be emptying by now when a small  _ ping _ caught his attention. Thinking it must be Peter tormenting him so much, he swipes it open once again but instead comes up with an unknown number. He immediately knows who it’s from.

**8:20 PM Unknown:** who knew welsh boys had so much balls.

**8:20 PM Unknown:** [picture] 

Remus chuckled to himself, remembering the absurd nickname he’d put inside the other’s phone. It all caps, it said  _ hipster with a big dick ;) _ It was childish, he knew it. He couldn’t help himself with it. As they said, ‘go big or go home.

**8:25 PM Remus:** is that supposed to be a pick-up line? It’s lacking, really.

**8:26 PM Hoy Boy:** wait hold on 

**8:26 PM Hoy Boy:** I can do better

**8:26 PM Hoy Boy:** On a scale of 1 to America, how free are you tonight?

Was Remus really prepared to start a summer fling? He thought of the boys peeking collarbones and boyish grin.  _ Yes. Yes, he was. _

He could hear the lecturing from her from his aunt coming in already. (He didn’t even know she was gay yet but he could feel it in his bones). On the other hand, he said fuck it. He wasn’t a child and he could take care of himself. 

But then with jarring realization, he remembered he was in charge of the little ones. He was sure Maddy could handle them herself, but it wouldn’t be fair to leave her all alone on their family vacation when he already saw so little of her. Then there was the matter of having no idea when the ‘adults’ (obviously they didn’t consider 20 old enough) would be returning. They were at Medieval Times - some themed dinner show they went to every year - and if they came back to see him gone there would be hell to pay. Family came first.

**8:28 PM Remus:** North Korea 

**8:29 PM Hoy Boy:** my ego is devastated :(

**8:29 PM Remus:** I’ve got homework :/ How about tomorrow night?

**8:35 PM Hoy Boy:** nerd.

**8:35 PM Hoy Boy:** deal.

**🌣🌣🌣**

As it turned out, he didn’t have to wait until then. 

Remus had woken up at six am because some third cousin of his had shown up and his grandpa had fussed at him to help them up, completely forgetting he’d only been able to fall asleep at three. So now he was running on less than three hours of sleep and an itching feeling to snap at the next sorry person who spoke to him as he walked to the small store for an energy drink. Just another thing his health-crazy aunt would freak about. He wondered if she really understood what just so happened in college after hours. It might just give her a heart attack. 

He stood in the back of the line filled with other grouchy guests ready to retreat back into the comforts of the rooms when, once again, a debate upfront of the line caught his attention. He was almost tempted to ignore it completely and go back to glaring at his frayed pajama pants but the voice was familiar.

“-Oh come on, it’s not like I haven’t any before.” Said the boy in front of the counter that laid a 12-pack of beer and separated him from the cashier. Remus couldn’t see his face but knew it was Sirius immediately. It was hard to forget that cheeky accent meddled with aristocracy and silky, black hair even if had only been a few short hours

“I don't care, kid. Read the sign:  _ 21 years or older.  _ No valid ID, no booze. Now beat it. You’re holding up the line.”

“It’s allowed where I live so-”

“The law is the law.”

Sirius turned around with a resigned huff. He gathered the box in his arms to place it back in the fridge in the back of the store and turned around. Remus considered saying something but dismissed it quickly. Looking down at his paint-stained jumper and pajama bottoms he hadn’t cared enough to switch out before his drink, he suddenly felt self-conscious. (Not something that happened very often, mind you.) He very much wanted to disappear before he could be spotted. Unfortunately, his famously bad luck had other plans. 

“Remus?”

He winced. Of course. 

_ Maybe I should pretend I have a twin. That's what Marlene does.  _ But it was too late - he’d already responded with a small wave. He reluctantly opens his mouth. “Hey.”

“Shit, I almost didn’t see you.” Sirius sets down the pack of beer in the corner and, to his terror, comes up next to him. He didn’t have a hair out of place. Remus suppressed a snort. Of course, he would be a morning person. Looking as if he’d come straight out of a magazine wasn’t enough. “You don’t happen to know where I could get some of this?” He asks, gesturing to the alcohol. He didn’t bother to lower his voice despite blatantly asking him something illegal. The cashier hadn’t even blinked, too busy with the next customer. Daily occurrence he supposed. 

Remus tried to act casual despite his insecurity. “At six-thirty in the morning?”

Sirius scratches the back of his head with a shy smile. It’s aggressively endearing. “Well, I exactly know it was so early…”

_ “You stayed up all night?”  _ Remus asks ludicrously. 

Sirius playfully shrugs. Remus finds it hard to believe at first but on closer look, he realizes Sirius is wearing make-up. It’s light yet enough to cover what-ever exhaustion he must have. That he  _ should  _ have. He still doesn’t seem to show it, though. How can someone be so filled with energy all the time? “Lost track of time is all…”

Remus stuffs his hands in his pockets and whistles. “I’d be biting off someone’s head by now.” 

“Come’s naturally to me I guess.”

The line moves forward and Remus finds himself in front of the cashier. He pushes forward four cans of Redbull and a pack of M&Ms as he swipes his card. 

“Hi again,” Sirius says to the man. He merrily gives a grunt in return and hands Remus his bagged items back. 

_ “Rude,”  _ Sirius mutters under his breath when they’re heading out the door together. The dewy, humid air hits him on full blast.

“You did just try to buy illegal underage alcohol and then argue about it.”

That was rather hypocritical of him. He paid his roommate to get him his cigarettes. Still, that was better than the blatant stealing he used to do in his adolescence. He was lucky he was never caught.

“Oi, don’t look at me like that! How was I supposed to know you maniacs have to wait until twenty-one?

“Not all of us are teenage alcoholics.”

Sirius’ smile falters for a fraction of a second before it’s back up again. Guilt immediately eats at him. He really  _ really _ needed to learn to think before he spoke if his past experiences were anything to learn by. He should know better than anyone that some things were off-topic to joke about. 

“Maybe I was providing my elderly grandmother on her deathbed one last whoo-rah before she kicked the bucket. You wouldn’t deny a dying old lady, would you?”

Remus snorts. “If she’s anything like mine I’d say go ahead.” 

He’d only met his father’s mother once and that was right after the incident. She’d cried and yelled, blaming everything on his mother when it was in fact her own son who’d been targeted. On bad days, he swore he could still hear the screaming accusations and fights ringing through his ears.

“Probably right. She’s a mean old bugger. She’d probably be happier in hell, to be honest. Like calls to like and all that.”

Remus laughs. He hadn’t even noticed his cranky mood had started to drift away without ever cracking open a can.


End file.
